Arsene Wenger looks likely to strip William Gallas of the Arsenal captaincy, while the French defender's future at the club is also in doubt following his recent outspoken comments about a number of his team-mates.

Gallas did not travel with the squad for tomorrow's Premier League clash with Manchester City, with French media sources claiming Wenger has already taken the captaincy off the player.

Arsenal declined to comment on whether Gallas had been removed as club captain.

Gallas has questioned the determination of some of the squad after Arsenal's inconsistent start to the season, which has already resulted in four league defeats.

He also referred to an incident at half-time during the recent 4-4 draw at home to Tottenham Hotspur and said on another occasion players had been insulted by an unnamed team-mate.

"There was a problem at half-time of the 4-4 draw with Tottenham. The only thing that I could say at half-time was, 'Guys, we resolve these problems after the match, not at half-time'," Gallas was quoted as saying.

"When as captain some players come up to you and talk to you about a player…complaining about him... and then during the match you speak to this player and the player in question insults us, there comes a time where we can no longer comprehend how this can happen."

Referring to the club's poor form, which has included defeats by Hull City and Stoke City, two clubs promoted from the Championship, the 31-year-old said: "We are not brave enough in battle.

"I think we need to be soldiers. To be champions, you have to play big matches every weekend and fight. We are coming up against teams who are not scared to play football against us, who are not scared to take us on at our place, and this is becoming dangerous for Arsenal."

In October, Gallas incurred the wrath of Wenger when he was photographed leaving a nightclub with a cigarette in his mouth.

"He has a responsibility as captain of Arsenal football club and that cannot be accepted," Wenger said at the time.

Gallas became club captain at the beginning of last season after Thierry Henry was sold to Barcelona.